Objective:To explore the differences of metabolomic profiles in day 3 (D3) culture medium of embryos with varying developmental potentials, in order to provide a theoretical foundation for the establishment of embryo selection technology platform using metabolomics.Methods:Eight patients who received in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET) treatment at Reproductive Medicine Center of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Maternal and Child Health Hospital between November 13 and December 5, 2023 were selected as the study subjects. The D3 culture medium from patient embryos was collected and divided into high-quality blastocysts ( n=42), non-high-quality blastocysts ( n=33), and embryos that failed to form blastocysts (non-formation group, n=43) according to the formation of day 5 blastocysts. High-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was employed to perform non-targeted metabolomic analysis in the D3 culture medium from three distinct groups. Results:1) The metabolites in D3 culture medium of embryos with varying developmental potentials exhibit significant differences. Specifically, 79 differential metabolites were identified between the blastocyst formation group and the non-blastocyst formation group (all P<0.05); additionally, 73 differential metabolites were found between the high-quality blastocyst group and the non-high-quality blastocyst group (all P<0.05). 2) The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of significantly differential metabolites for predicting potential of D3 embryo blastocyst formation and high-quality blastocyst formation were both greater than 0.9, demonstrating excellent predictive performance. 3) KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed that differential metabolites associated with blastocyst formation potential were primarily enriched in pathways including D-amino acid metabolism, glycine-serine-threonine metabolism, arginine biosynthesis, and histidine metabolism ( P<0.05). For high-quality blastocyst formation, the differential metabolites were predominantly enriched in pathways related to tryptophan metabolism, D-amino acid metabolism, serotonergic synapses, and protein digestion and absorption ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Embryos with different developmental potentials have significantly different metabolic profiles, and it is feasible to predict the developmental potential of D3 embryos by metabolomics analysis.

Objective:To explore the differences of metabolomic profiles in day 3 (D3) culture medium of embryos with varying developmental potentials, in order to provide a theoretical foundation for the establishment of embryo selection technology platform using metabolomics.Methods:Eight patients who received in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET) treatment at Reproductive Medicine Center of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Maternal and Child Health Hospital between November 13 and December 5, 2023 were selected as the study subjects. The D3 culture medium from patient embryos was collected and divided into high-quality blastocysts ( n=42), non-high-quality blastocysts ( n=33), and embryos that failed to form blastocysts (non-formation group, n=43) according to the formation of day 5 blastocysts. High-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was employed to perform non-targeted metabolomic analysis in the D3 culture medium from three distinct groups. Results:1) The metabolites in D3 culture medium of embryos with varying developmental potentials exhibit significant differences. Specifically, 79 differential metabolites were identified between the blastocyst formation group and the non-blastocyst formation group (all P<0.05); additionally, 73 differential metabolites were found between the high-quality blastocyst group and the non-high-quality blastocyst group (all P<0.05). 2) The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of significantly differential metabolites for predicting potential of D3 embryo blastocyst formation and high-quality blastocyst formation were both greater than 0.9, demonstrating excellent predictive performance. 3) KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed that differential metabolites associated with blastocyst formation potential were primarily enriched in pathways including D-amino acid metabolism, glycine-serine-threonine metabolism, arginine biosynthesis, and histidine metabolism ( P<0.05). For high-quality blastocyst formation, the differential metabolites were predominantly enriched in pathways related to tryptophan metabolism, D-amino acid metabolism, serotonergic synapses, and protein digestion and absorption ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Embryos with different developmental potentials have significantly different metabolic profiles, and it is feasible to predict the developmental potential of D3 embryos by metabolomics analysis.

Objective To study the diagnostic efficacy of magnifying endoscopy with narrow-band imaging(ME-NBI)in the diagnosis of early gastric cancer and intraepithelial neoplasia,and their manifestations under ME-NBI.Methods In this retrospective research,we enrolled 131 cases of early gastric cancer and intraepithelial neoplasia.Then analyze the ME-NBI manifestations of lesions,compare the diagnostic efficacy of ME-NBI and white light endoscopy(WLI)+biopsy methods in early gastric cancer and intraepithelial neoplasia and study the ME-NBI manifestations of different degrees of lesions.Results The diagnostic accuracy of ME-NBI for diagnosing early gastric cancer,high grade intraepithelial neoplasia(HGIN)and low grade intraepithelial neoplasia(LGIN)was 77.96%,77.96%and 77.96%,respectively.The diagnostic accuracy of WLI+biopsy for above lesions was 60.53%,58.47%and 69.70%,respectively.There was no statistically significant difference in the accuracy of two diagnostic methods for LGIN(P>0.05),while there was a statistically significant difference in the accuracy of two diagnostic methods for early gastric cancer and HGIN(P<0.05).In LGIN,the highest rate of cerebral gyrus glandular duct emergence was 60.46%.The incidence of papillary and villous ducts is highest in HGIN and early gastric cancer,with rates of 57.14%and 52.00%,respectively.Conclusion ME-NBI has more diagnostic efficiency in early gastric cancer than WLI+biopsy.The demarcation line has better sensitivity in differentiated early gastric cancer and intraepithelial neoplasia.Micro-surface tube like villous,papillary structures has higher occurrence rates in early gastric cancer.The cerebral gyrus microglandular duct appeares significantly higher in LGIN than other groups.

Objective:To screen the differentially expressed immune-related genes(DEIRGs)in in-stent restenosis(ISR),and to analyze the immune cell infiltration in ISR,and to clarify the mechanism of occurrence and development of ISR.Methods:The mRNA gene expression data of GSE46560 dataset samples were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO),and divided into ISR group and non-ISR group.The"Limma"package in R software was used to identify the differentially expressed genes(DEGs)which were then intersected with immune-related genes(IRGs)to identify the DEIRGs in ISR;R software was used for Gene Ontology(GO)functional enrichment andalysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)signaling pathway enrichment analysis on DEIRGs;the STRING database was used to construct the protein-protein interaction(PPI)network,which was visualized and analyzed for Hub genes by Cytoscape software;the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve of the Hub genes were plotted,and the area under the curve(AUC)was calculated and the diagnostic value was evaluated;CIBERSORT software was used to analyze the immune cell infiltration in ISR;Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationships between the immune cells and the relationships between the immune cells and key genes.Results:A total of 331 DEGs were identified(P<0.05,|log2FC|>1),including 176 upregulated genes and 155 downregulated genes,and 38 DEIRGs were obstained.The GO functional enrichment analysis results showed that the DEIRGs were mainly enriched in biological processes(BP)such as defense response,immune response,and immune system;in cellular components(CC),the DEIRGs were located primarily in the extracellular region and cytoplasmic membrane;and in molecular functions(MF),the DEIRGs were mainly involved in regulating signaling receptor binding and cytokine receptor activity.The KEGG signaling pathway enrichment analysis results indicated that the DEIRGs in ISR were primarily enriched in the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B(PI3K-AKT)and transforming growth factor-β(TGF-β)signaling pathways.In the PPI network,CD19 had the highest node among the top 10 Hub genes.Compared with non-ISR group,the expression level of the CD19 gene in the samples in ISR group was increased(P<0.05).The AUC value in the ROC curve of CD19 gene expression was 0.92(P<0.05).The immune cell infiltration analysis results showed that compared with non-ISR group,the infiltration level of T lymphocyte follicular helper(Tfh)cells in the patients in ISR group were increased(P<0.05),the infiltration levels of immature B lymphocytes,CD8+T lymphocytes,naive CD4+T lymphocytes,and M0 macrophages were increased,but the differences were not statistically significant(P>0.05),while the infiltration levels of memory B lymphocytes,activated memory CD4+T lymphocytes,regulatory T cells,resting natural killer(NK)cells,activated NK cells,monocytes,resting mast cells,and neutrophils were decreased,but the differences were not statistically significant(P>0.05).There were positive correlations between Tfh cells and M0 macrophages and resting mast cells(r=0.88,P<0.05;r=0.68,P<0.05),and there were negative correlations between Tfh cells and monocytes and neutrophils(r=-0.49,P<0.05;r=-0.42,P<0.05).Conclusion:CD19 may influence the occurrence and development of ISR by regulating the activation of the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway to affect the Tfh and B lymphocytes.CD19 can serve as a biomarker for the diagnosis of ISR.

Objective:To investigate the effects of different semen sample collection methods on sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) test results, then to evaluate the accuracy of the current semen sample collection method in the assessment of male fertility.Methods:In this study, 50 semen sample obtained on the day of oocyte retrieval from patients undergoing in vitro fertilization at the Reproductive Medical Center in Maternity and Child Health Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from August 2021 to January 2022 were collected. For each semen, a small amount of samples were collected in three different retention methods for routine semen and sperm DFI testing. Three different ways of retaining samples were as follows: group A, after mixing of the semen, 50 μL sample was directly collected; group B, after density gradient centrifugation, 50 μL sample was collected at the interface between semen and gradient fluid; group C, after density gradient centrifugation, the sperm pellet was upstream, then 50 μL sample was collected from upstream liquid. After semen treatment, routine semen testing and sperm DFI testing were performed. Pearson was used to analyze the correlation between DFI and the percentage of immobile sperm and the percentage of forward sperm movement. Results:The sperm motility rate of group C [(96.83±2.28)%] was significantly higher than that of group A [(57.16±11.28)%, P<0.001] and group B [(22.54±9.35)%, P<0.001], and there was a statistical difference among the three groups. The immotile sperm rate of group B sample was (77.46±9.35)%, which was significantly higher than that of samples from group C [(3.14±2.31)%, P<0.001] and group A [(42.83±11.28)%, P<0.001]. There was also a statistical difference in DFI among the three groups ( P<0.001). The DFI of group B [37.18% (30.41%, 47.80%)] was significantly higher than that of group A [22.00% (14.75%, 29.25%), P<0.001] and group C [0.78% (0.00%, 2.07%), P<0.001]. Pearson analysis results showed that the DFI of group A and group B was positively correlated with the percentage of immobile sperm ( r=0.304, P=0.032; r=0.612, P<0.001), while the DFI of group B was negatively correlated with the percentage of sperm forward movement ( r=-0.517, P<0.001). Conclusion:For the same semen, the DFI of immotile sperm was significantly higher than that of motile sperm. Therefore, due to the interference of immotile sperm, the DFI value by the current sample retention method cannot accurately reflect the DNA status of active sperm participating in fertilization. This suggests that the samples used for DFI testing should be collected from motile sperm collected by gradient centrifugation, upstream or other methods, which can more accurately assess male fertility.

Objective:To investigate the effects of different semen sample collection methods on sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) test results, then to evaluate the accuracy of the current semen sample collection method in the assessment of male fertility.Methods:In this study, 50 semen sample obtained on the day of oocyte retrieval from patients undergoing in vitro fertilization at the Reproductive Medical Center in Maternity and Child Health Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from August 2021 to January 2022 were collected. For each semen, a small amount of samples were collected in three different retention methods for routine semen and sperm DFI testing. Three different ways of retaining samples were as follows: group A, after mixing of the semen, 50 μL sample was directly collected; group B, after density gradient centrifugation, 50 μL sample was collected at the interface between semen and gradient fluid; group C, after density gradient centrifugation, the sperm pellet was upstream, then 50 μL sample was collected from upstream liquid. After semen treatment, routine semen testing and sperm DFI testing were performed. Pearson was used to analyze the correlation between DFI and the percentage of immobile sperm and the percentage of forward sperm movement. Results:The sperm motility rate of group C [(96.83±2.28)%] was significantly higher than that of group A [(57.16±11.28)%, P<0.001] and group B [(22.54±9.35)%, P<0.001], and there was a statistical difference among the three groups. The immotile sperm rate of group B sample was (77.46±9.35)%, which was significantly higher than that of samples from group C [(3.14±2.31)%, P<0.001] and group A [(42.83±11.28)%, P<0.001]. There was also a statistical difference in DFI among the three groups ( P<0.001). The DFI of group B [37.18% (30.41%, 47.80%)] was significantly higher than that of group A [22.00% (14.75%, 29.25%), P<0.001] and group C [0.78% (0.00%, 2.07%), P<0.001]. Pearson analysis results showed that the DFI of group A and group B was positively correlated with the percentage of immobile sperm ( r=0.304, P=0.032; r=0.612, P<0.001), while the DFI of group B was negatively correlated with the percentage of sperm forward movement ( r=-0.517, P<0.001). Conclusion:For the same semen, the DFI of immotile sperm was significantly higher than that of motile sperm. Therefore, due to the interference of immotile sperm, the DFI value by the current sample retention method cannot accurately reflect the DNA status of active sperm participating in fertilization. This suggests that the samples used for DFI testing should be collected from motile sperm collected by gradient centrifugation, upstream or other methods, which can more accurately assess male fertility.

Cytosine methylation is one of the major types of DNA epigenetic modifications and plays an important role in maintaining normal cell function and regulating gene expression. Bisulfite sequencing PCR (BSP) based cloning and sequencing is a general method for detecting DNA methylation at specific sites, which can clarify the methylation status of each CpG site in the target fragment. However, this method requires large amounts of single-clonal sequencing, which is complicated to operate, time consuming and expensive. Therefore, the development of an accurate, efficient and convenient DNA methylation detection technology is of great significance to improve the efficiency of epigenetic research. Based on the high-throughput mutation detection platform Hi-TOM (high-throughput tracking of mutations) developed by our group, we further established a site-specific DNA methylation high-throughput detection platform Hi-Meth (High-throughput Detection of DNA Methylation). After bisulfite treatment of DNA samples, the specific site-specific DNA methylation analysis results could be obtained through the Hi-Meth platform by performing only one round of PCR amplification. Using the Hi-Meth platform, the DNA methylation status of two promoter regions of rice were detected. The DNA methylation results from Hi-Meth were consistent with the results from BSP-based method. Thus, site-specific DNA methylation analysis results could be obtained accurately and conveniently through the Hi-Meth platform. In conclusion, Hi-Meth provides an important methylation detection platform for specific DNA regions, which has important significance for epigenetic research.
DNA Methylation ; Epigenesis, Genetic ; Epigenomics ; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing/methods* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sequence Analysis, DNA/methods*

Background: Brucella infection induces brucellosis, a zoonotic disease. The intracellular circulation process and virulence of Brucella mainly depend on its type IV secretion system (T4SS) expressing secretory effectors. Secreted protein BspJ is a nucleomodulin of Brucella that invades the host cell nucleus. BspJ mediates host energy synthesis and apoptosis through interaction with proteins. However, the mechanism of BspJ as it affects the intracellular survival of Brucella remains to be clarified. Objectives: To verify the functions of nucleomodulin BspJ in Brucella's intracellular infection cycles. Methods: Constructed Brucella abortus BspJ gene deletion strain (B. abortus ΔBspJ) and complement strain (B. abortus pBspJ) and studied their roles in the proliferation of Brucella both in vivo and in vitro. Results: BspJ gene deletion reduced the survival and intracellular proliferation of Brucellaat the replicating Brucella-containing vacuoles (rBCV) stage. Compared with the parent strain, the colonization ability of the bacteria in mice was significantly reduced, causing less inflammatory infiltration and pathological damage. We also found that the knockout of BspJ altered the secretion of cytokines (interleukin [IL]-6, IL-1β, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon-γ) in host cells and in mice to affect the intracellular survival of Brucella. Conclusions BspJ is extremely important for the circulatory proliferation of Brucella in the host, and it may be involved in a previously unknown mechanism of Brucella's intracellular survival.

Objective:To investigate the effect of extracellular vesicles derived from lung tissue on intrapulmonary inflammation and the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) in sepsis rats.Methods:Sepsis rat model was established by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). Collagenase D and DNase I were used to dissociate the lung tissue, the impurities were removed by centrifugation, and finally, the extracellular vesicles (Ti-EVs) derived from lung tissue were separated and extracted by differential ultracentrifugation. Eighteen male SD rats were randomly divided into the sham group, sepsis group and Ti-EVs group: in the Ti-sEV group, a sepsis model was established by CLP, and Ti-EVs suspension was instilled through the airway; rats in the CLP group received CLP, and an equal volume of PBS was instilled through the airway; and rats in the sham group was treated with sham operation. The pathological changes of lung tissue were detected by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining after 24 h. The content of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Immunofluorescence was used to detect the NETs content in lung tissue.Results:The isolated extracellular vesicles derived from rat lung tissue were observed by transmission electron microscopy as double-layer circular cystic vesicles with particle diameter mainly distributed at 150 nm. Western blot showed positive expression of EVs markers CD9, CD63, and Tsg101. HE staining of lung tissue showed alveolar integrity damage and a large number of inflammatory cells infiltrated in the lung of sepsis rats. Compared with the CLP group, the degree of lung tissue damage was more serious in the Ti-EVs group and the levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 in the BALF of rats were significantly increased ( P<0.01). The formation of NETs in the lungs of the rats in the sepsis group and the Ti-EVs group was observed under the laser confocal microscope. Compared with the sepsis group, the fluorescence intensity of NETs in the lung tissues of the Ti-EVs group increased significantly. Conclusions:After enzymatic digestion, differential ultracentrifugation and other treatments, the extracellular vesicles derived from rat lung tissue with high purity can be successfully isolated and extracted. In the process of septic lung injury, extracellular vesicles in lung tissue can aggravate the inflammatory response in the lung and promote the formation of NETs.

OBJECTIVE To establish the quality standard of Onosma echioides . METHODS Sixteen batches of O. echioides from different sources were collected to observe their appearance ，microscopic powder identification ，and TLC identification ；the impurity，moisture，total ash and acid -insoluble ash of the medicinal materials were examined . The total pigment content of hydroxynaphthoquinone in O. echioides was determined by UV -visible spectrophotometry ；the contents of alkannin and β，β′- dimethylacrylalkannin in O. echioides were determined by HPLC . RESULTS Medicinal material and powder of O. echioides were purplish red ；non-glandular single cells ，embolized cells ，parenchyma cells ，reticulate ducts could be seen microscopically . TLC results showed that the color and change of the spots in the chromatogram of test sample were consistent with that of the control . The contents of moisture ，total ash and acid insoluble ashshall not exceed 13.0%，18.0%，6.0%. The total pigment content of hydroxynaphthoquinone should not be less than 0.80%. The content of alkannin was recommended to be no less than 0.06 mg/g. The content of β，β′-dimethylacrylalkannin was recommended to be no less than 0.60 mg/g. CONCLUSIONS The established standard can provide reference for the scientific evaluation of the quality of the medicinal materials of O. echioides.